Watch Heritage NEXT

Have a question for leadership?

FAQ

Version: 7/1/2025

What’s the plan for long-term leadership and staff health at Heritage?

Andy Sieberhagen will serve in the Lead Pastor role this year and will continue preaching regularly and overseeing church functions. He will be taking a sabbatical for rest and restoration in January 2026. Upon his return, he will assume the role of Missions Pastor, a role for which he has tremendous passion and gifts. In the meantime, a national pastoral search firm has been retained and the search for a new Lead Pastor has begun. 

How are we making sure Heritage is financially healthy and sustainable?  

Heritage has always sought to steward its finances faithfully and transparently.  Financial summaries are published on The Hub, along with reviews from an independent accountant, which provide additional details on our cash flow and expenses.  
A proposed 2025-2026 budget is being developed currently that reflects our current trend and will be brought before the elders for approval. After the budget is set, our pastors and staff do a phenomenal job in consistently managing expenses within actual giving, adjusting throughout the ministry year (September to August) to avoid spending more than the church receives in giving.  
Prudent financial management has allowed Heritage to eliminate its debt (in 2017) and to build and maintain “rainy day” cash reserves. In recent years, we have used some of our reserves to help us adapt to lower levels of giving during and following the pandemic. We have also made adjustments to reduce our expenses, such as reducing staffing and simplifying ministries. We continue to evaluate the best way to balance investments across the various areas required to accomplish our mission and vision. We will keep the congregation informed of these changes going forward.

What role does scripture and the gospel play in our teaching and worship gatherings right now? 

We understand from Scripture that the regular gathering of the saints is an essential element of our calling as Jesus followers. We gather to welcome the presence of Christ in our midst (Matt. 18:20) and to immerse ourselves in Scripture and prayerful contemplation (Acts 2), that we may be transformed by the renewing of our minds and resist conformity to the patterns of the world (Romans 12:2). We gather to confess to one another and receive healing in the name of Christ (James 5:16). We gather to deeply understand the gospel, and to explore and live out together its implications for a life of practical love (Hebrews 10:24-25; 1 Cor 14:26; James 2).  
We are not only pondering fresh ways to elevate these essentials in our worship gatherings, but challenging ourselves to consider ways in which “worship” and “missions” and “community” and “spiritual formation” might become less compartmentalized, more integrated, and more active.

How can I better understand who makes decisions and how those are communicated to the church family? 

Historically, the elder board has operated under the “Carver Model” which grants oversight responsibility to the board, but delegates authority over daily activities and staff to the Lead Pastor. Pastor Andy will continue as Lead Pastor this year, but the board will take a more active role walking alongside him to ease the transition to a new Lead Pastor. While much of the day-to-day hard work of staff will proceed as it has been, the board will engage as needed and requested to ensure Heritage continues as uninterrupted as possible during this season of change. 
In addition to updating this FAQ document as needed, the board is seeking other methods to communicate with the church body. These efforts could include quarterly church meetings, announcements from the stage during church services, congregational surveys, and articles included in the “This is Your Heritage” emails.  

Why have so many people left recently—and what does that mean for the rest of us?  

While it can be hard or unsettling to see friends leave the church, it is quite common for all churches to experience. People tend to come to a church in seasons and leave in seasons. 
We are in a season of change with a new vision and soon a new lead pastor. It is not uncommon for people to decide to explore options when a church is in change. We are not trying to encourage people to look elsewhere. We would prefer each of our friends would sense God leading them to stay with this community and labor with us, but we understand and want to bless them as they explore. 
Also, summer is always a difficult time to determine the composition of our body. The summer often makes us wonder where people are. All are more likely to alter their routine in the summer months. We tend to take vacations, go on weekend trips, do family events, or simply go to a different service.
New families are visiting us weekly but our in-person attendance is shrinking some. We have experienced a 4% decline in in-person attendance comparing our current ministry year to the same time frame from the previous ministry year. 
What the numbers do not show is why a person leaves. As a larger congregation, it is not always apparent when ones step away or are questioning their place at Heritage. We are grateful for those who bring to our attention these situations so engagement can take place. As brothers and sisters, we encourage everyone to look out for each other and to reach out if you notice a brother/sister is absent or struggling. This is a natural outcome of building relationships and being engaged in community.

Where are the most important current volunteer needs, and how can I get involved in a way that’s life-giving?

The current volunteer needs can be found at heritagecc.org as well as on the HUB. For example, we have several immediate volunteer opportunities available:
  • 9am Ushers x4
  • 9am Connection Coordinator x2
  • 9am Children's Entrance Greeters x2 
  • 10:30am Main Entrance Greeters x2
  • 9am and 10:30am Heritage Kids Teachers x5
However, perhaps the most significant need is for people who have a heart for kids to step in as a teacher or assistant in Heritage Kids (K-5) or as a small group leader in Heritage Students (6-12th grade) for the upcoming year. You can use the Hub to reach out to Addie Lopes or Matt Spiegel to learn more about opportunities to get involved.

What’s the vision for our kids and students—and how are we discipling the next generation

We envision a vibrant and attractive ministry for children, middle and high school students, college students, and young adults. These next-generation segments have specific and changing needs and interests. We will work to understand and address these needs and interests as we help them to grow in their understanding and love for Jesus. 
We look to invest in Heritage Kids (children) to make everything they do more welcoming and engaging for the children, parents, and volunteers. From the first-time check-in to the classroom experience, we want our kids and parents to look forward to participating each week. We encourage trained and engaged volunteers to pour the love of Jesus into children and remain friends as they grow.
Similarly, we see Middle and High school as a critical time for students. The relationships they build at this time will influence them for a lifetime. We want to encourage a wealth of these relationships between leaders and volunteers as we grow together in Jesus.
College and Young Adult ministry will likely start to take shape later in our 3-year vision. We will pray and wait as God brings ones to us. As He does, we will work with them to build a foundation for ministering to these groups with an eye to creating a lively young adult ministry again.

How are we evaluating the impact and purpose of things like Saturday night services or major ministry programs?  

The identification of the four aspects of Heritage’s Vision (Spiritual Formation, Next Gen, Mission, and Community) will help inform which church programs should be more fully advanced and those which may need to be retired or altered. The consultant we retained strongly recommends that churches ensure their programs are not “a mile wide but an inch deep” but to instead invest in specifically identified endeavors and ministries. As a result, we seek to evaluate current undertakings and invite staff, elders, and program volunteers to speak into these decisions while keeping the identified Vision as the foundation of those determinations. 

What’s the one thing you want every person at Heritage to know or feel in this season?

During this season of change and transition, unity is crucial. Unity does not imply conformity in agreement but instead embraces a diverse harmony and oneness in our love for Jesus and one another. We completely acknowledge and accept that the entire church body will never come to complete consensus on every decision. Our goal, then, is to embrace Jesus’ prayer in the gospel of John, which will then inform our interactions with one another:
“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” John 17:20-23

What are the plans for the Lead Pastor search and replacement?   

We are retaining a highly reputable executive search firm that specializes in lead pastor placement to help us find the man or woman of God who is called to be Heritage’s next lead pastor. This process kicks off with the formation of a search team and a congregational survey to learn what is important to our congregation. The search team will include seven members: one elder, one staff member, and five congregants. The search team will work closely with the search firm and will provide regular updates to the congregation on the process and key milestones/phases. We expect to receive candidates this Fall, and will begin the process of discerning the finalist(s), whom we will invite to visit Heritage.  
According to the search firm, it is common for the process to take 6-12 months for the lead pastor to arrive; only God knows who and when, but based on this data, we hope to be welcoming our next lead pastor sometime in the first half of 2026.